Alien in Human Skin
by Leelhiette
Summary: AU – Echizen Ryoma couldn't remember why he was putting up with a strange and weird girl who seemed to have no common sense at the basic things of human nature. Aside from losing to her, as far as he knew, she's an alien in human skin.


**AN**: Hey! This is my first PoTxHPcrossover. Honestly, the inspiration just suddenly hit me. Anyways, I didn't use Harry (sorry to disappoint) since I didn't want to bend his gender and most people used his character anyways. This is just a light-hearted fic (Harry will still appear, not just for long since he isn't a main character in this) and I want to take a different angle in this kind of crossover.

I also tweaked around with Daphne's background to fit this story - and her POV will be showed in the next chapter so you can get the idea of how this beginning happened. Ryoma might have been OOC but I'm fixing it.

Anyways, _enjoy this chapter_!

**OooOoOooO**

* * *

Prologue

"…what was it again that you said? Oh, that's right. _Mada mada dane_, stranger-san. That's quite the arrogance, ne?" The boy smiled down at him mockingly and Ryoma bristled with anger as he glared up into those amused blue eyes.

Ryoma recalled how he had gotten into this situation in the first place. He had gone out and went to the nearby street courts after the irritating nagging of his father over his laziness and decision to stay in the house. Of course, tennis had come to the forefront of his mind. He had even challenged the old man to a match but the crazy pervert wasn't simply up for it. And to escape the whines, Ryoma had chosen to play at the street courts instead.

To his chagrin, those he had challenged to play were nothing but mediocre at best. And he was just getting to the peak of his frustration and decision to go home eventually when a boy his age with a black cap – similar to his except in color – casually strolled into the courts. Auburn strands of hair peeked out of the small cap while the rim was lowered enough to shadow his face from view except for his expressive blue eyes. He was also a foreigner, judging from his accent and western features – British if he had deduced it right.

For his part, he hadn't really taken the other seriously. Mostly due to how the stranger dressed – a neon yellow shirt with knee-length indigo shorts. It hurt to even look at him due to the brightness of his clothes. But really, Ryoma should have known better after playing his old man for years and Echizen Nanjirou was downright crazy.

When the other had asked for a name – "_So I can tell the name of my opponent_" – Ryoma had merely smirked before refusing. The auburn haired boy had not been pleased and Ryoma just thought that the other was too formal to be normal. In fact, the boy was completely odd. He didn't bring any tennis bag or anything with him. Just his clothes, cap, and green tennis racket. He also had a way of being sarcastic through politeness that it was absolutely irking.

And he thought that Horio was the most annoying person he had the misfortune of meeting.

But that was his mistake, Ryoma had vastly underestimated him. And by the time he realized his error, it had been too late and the boy had sealed the match with seven sets to five with a win. To say the least, his goading and overconfidence had also brought his own defeat upon him. Thankfully, the courts were deserted by the time they finished the game.

The auburn haired boy, despite how he was initially put off by Ryoma's conceited introduction, had simply looked amazed as if he couldn't honestly care because he had fun.

"Che," He scowled and stood up as he tried to rein in the aggravated resentment within him. "You won't be so lucky next time," Ryoma warned as he couldn't quite get over the fact that he had lost. And he seemed to be doing so well too after that last match with Fudomine a few days ago.

"_There will be a next time_?" The other boy spoke in English as he looked at Ryoma with surprise and a little hope.

"_Of course, I will beat you by then,_" Ryoma promised as he glared, bitterness welling up within him at the mere thought.

For a moment, the other boy was silent. Before he smiled brightly at the dark haired boy.

"Arigatou, stranger-san!" He bowed fully before straightening up with a look of utter gratefulness that made Ryoma sick. The boy really was strange – too polite even by their customs. And of course, the fact that he was totally weird did not escape him – "_You'll bet your ponta? What's that? Is it worth a gold_?" – after Ryoma had casually told him that he would bet his ponta that the British boy would lose. And who the heck refer to _gold_ as part of bargaining nowadays? And the worse thing, the boy had been completely serious about it.

"Whatever," Ryoma grunted, wanting to be alone at the moment.

Upon hearing some shuffling behind him, Ryoma's eyes narrowed as he stared flatly at the weird boy who smiled uncertainly at him. But determined to follow him still. He scowled as he strode away with the auburn haired boy still following him around. It wasn't until they got a considerable distance away from the street courts that Ryoma whirled around and glowered at the British boy with contempt.

But the boy just stared back at him pleasantly, almost calmly.

And Ryoma was just getting tired to deal with it.

"What is it with _you_?" He growled angrily. "I already lost–" He tried to ignore the sourness it brought. "–so stop being so infuriating and leave me alone." He gritted out, his frustration doing the talking for him at the moment.

Aggravated golden eyes stared at uncertain blue ones. It wasn't until the boy lowered the rim of his cap even more that Ryoma noticed that the other was embarrassed.

"_I still don't know my way around here,_" The boy admitted quietly in English as he peered at Ryoma almost shyly. "_ And… I really have to go to a… uhm – what was it that Aimi told me? Grotest, no… grocing, no, no… uhm…_" He looked deep in thought as he tilted his head before a cry of triumph escaped his lips. "_A grocery store! That's it! I need to buy some… groceries!_"

Ryoma stared at the weird boy before him blankly.

Seriously, was this person raised under a rock or inside a cave? Even for British, it was common since grocery stores at least weren't something that was only unique to Japanese. And this boy was acting as if it was the first time he ever even used the term itself. Was insanity a requirement to be a great tennis player and no one told him about it? Ryoma then thought of Fuji's sadism, his dad's perverseness, Taka's split personality, Eiji's tendency to speak almost like a cat, Oishi's mother-hen attitude, Tezuka's extremely stoic countenance, and Inui's juice of death – and he firmly decided that he'd be the first sane player out of all of them.

He considered his options since a bigger part of him wanted to be alone and didn't want to be reminded of his lost. This boy was certainly a reminder since Ryoma knew it was his first lost (it stung _appallingly_, he knew, but the oddness of the other boy made the feeling almost surreal). But on the other hand, the boy hadn't taunted him about it, especially how Ryoma had been arrogant in the beginning, but merely thanked him – _sincerely_. And a smaller part buried deep, deep, _deep_ inside wanted to lead the other in circles as a kind of petty revenge.

But then, his conscience chose that moment to come alive as the boy now appeared to be quite anxious.

Ryoma grunted in irritation at the thought.

"Fine," He finally responded in Japanese. "But you'll have to buy me a Ponta." He negotiated with narrowed eyes, as if daring the other person to disagree.

"Alright, I'll buy you a… Ponta," The auburn haired boy gave his acquiescence but he still seemed confused about Ponta. Ryoma snorted as he walked ahead of the boy again while the other grumbled at his attitude.

Ryoma led the other through the shopping districts, recalling the particular grocery store that sold his precious grape ponta. While the boy awkwardly tagged along, racket in hand, as people stared at him and his bright clothes. As much as Ryoma wanted to put more distance between them, the other seemed determined to follow him closely.

He was used to the attention before – but the kind where people looked at him in awe for his tennis skills. Not oddly like he was some alien because of his companion. But then again, he might just be more paranoid than usual. Ryoma looked at his auburn haired companion and raised an eyebrow at the way the other was acting. His head swivelled from side to side as if he was some extremely curious child who had gotten his first glimpse of the outside world. The boy looked at everything in keen fascination as if they were the most interesting thing in the world – and Ryoma had to wonder if there was some truth in his theory that the other had been raised inside a cave.

It wasn't until they were only a shop away from the intended store that something unexpected happened. The screeching of tires reached their ears and they turned to see a small boy, no older than six, standing in the middle of the road with a honking car on its way to crush into him. Ryoma just caught a glimpse of bright yellow before his eyes widened as the auburn haired boy ran and grabbed the small boy just in time before the car could reach them.

Was it just him or did a dent just form on the bumper of that car? His head snapped to his feet and saw the black cap of the other boy. It must've fallen when he ran. Ryoma picked it up and crossed the road – after making sure that there weren't any speeding cars this time – and approached his admittedly stupid companion. That had been dangerous. And yet, the other boy had run recklessly despite it.

"Arigatou gozaimasu!" A tearful woman kept thanking as she hugged the small boy to her with tearful eyes. "I just looked away for a moment and Yuichi–" She cried further as if thinking what could've happened. A crowd started to form as they consoled the distressed mother and child.

Ryoma scowled in annoyance at the sudden influx of people before looking at his companion with impatience. His eyes widened exponentially as he took in the appearance of the other 'boy'. Long auburn hair reached 'his' waist while wide, twinkling blue eyes stared back at him. The face was softer, obviously feminine, and suddenly, the body wasn't as scrawny as a boy's like he had initially thought.

"You're… a girl?" Ryoma asked incredulously.

Then the implication hit him harder. He lost to a _girl_…

* * *

**~0~**_  
_

_Thank you for reading this! If you maybe so kind as to leave your opinion... _


End file.
